Why Not Now?

There's a famous quote that I'm going to paraphrase, and that quote goes something like this:  "Most people live lives of quiet desperation."   And what does that mean?  I think it means we're very often just going through the motions in our lives.  We're putting off until tomorrow the things we really want to do.  We're held back by the belief that we're stuck where we are.  That there's no way out.  We have obligations, we have no plan for our future...  We are left with dreams we don't really believe are going to come true anytime soon.  "Sure I'd like to take a trip to Europe, but who has the money?"  "I am so unhappy in my relationship, but I'm scared to be alone..."  "I really need to find a job that I can find meaningful..."  

Day after day, week after week, year after year we dream of that day when things will get better.   We put up with the jobs we don't like, the relationships we find unfulfilling, and we look to the future because that's when things will improve.  Well... I'm not so sure that day's going to come if we keep doing the same things we've been doing all of these years.  It seems to me that if we don't take steps toward improving our situations, we may find ourselves in the exact same positions we are in today... whether it's next week or next year.  But what can we do?  We all lead busy lives and we all have things that need to get done.  What can we truly do to make the changes we want, without being irresponsible and abandoning our commitments.

Well, I'm glad you asked.  My thought is that the first step has to be deciding what we really want and then taking the first step toward achieving it.  If your relationship is bad, clarify what doesn't work and think about what you can do to make it better.  Would talking to your partner frankly and honestly help?  If the communication is too strained to do it on your own, what about couples therapy?  You never know when a professional might help make it easier to communicate.
 
Whatever you want, think about the first step toward making it better.  Hate your job?   Well, what would you rather do?  I'm not advocating quitting, but you could start exploring.  You could start researching what you want for your future.  You could start becoming an expert in what works for you.  And you can start that anytime.  The internet is full of websites devoted to whatever it may be that interests you.  And you don't have to wait.  You can start right now.  All it takes is cutting through our excuses and giving ourselves the freedom to explore our hopes and dreams. 

These may sound like little steps, however the first part of any journey is not necessarily starting to go... it's figuring out where you want to go.  And even if you have obligations you can't get out of right now, and even if you feel that there's nothing you can currently do, you can start to think.  You can start to visualize where you'd like to go.  And that visualization, that ability to truly form a plan to help actualize your dreams can be done anytime.  It can be done right now if you want.  Who's going to stop you?  All it takes is giving your mind the freedom to envision what you truly want in life.  And once you have it visualized, you can explore the steps necessary to make it happen.